Camelot Park facility closing Wednesday for $6 million renovation

Camelot Park Community Center will close Wednesday in advance of a nearly $6 million project that will nearly double the size of the facility. The work, expected to be complete next fall, includes a new gymnasium with an elevated walking track.Bob Chwedyk | Staff Photographer

Camelot Park Community Center will close Wednesday in advance of a nearly $6 million project that will nearly double the size of the facility. The work, expected to be complete next fall, includes a new gymnasium with an elevated walking track.Bob Chwedyk | Staff Photographer

Melissa Silverberg

Camelot Community Center in Arlington Heights will close later this week as a nearly $6 million renovation project gets under way.

The $5.83 million project is funded in part by a $2.5 million grant from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, according to the Arlington Heights Park District.

It is the district's second major facility improvement in recent years. Pioneer Community Center was renovated in 2008.

The park will close starting Wednesday, and construction is expected to begin in early October.

The project will more than double the size of the community center building, adding 13,842 square feet of space including a new gymnasium with an elevated walking track, a new preschool room, and a new main entry way and lobby, as well as more programming space and additional parking. The current facility at Camelot Park, 1005 E. Suffield Drive, is more than 40 years old.

The facility is expected to reopen in fall 2014, according to the district.

During the closure, all programs and sports will move to other Arlington Heights Park District facilities.

While the community center is closing this week, Camelot Park's outdoor amenities, such as the basketball courts, picnic shelter and playground area, will remain open until construction starts next month, according to the park district website.

The park district had planned to renovate all of its major parks and community centers with money from a proposed $48 million bond sale, but voters rejected that -- as well as a scaled-back $39 million plan -- last year in a pair of referendums.

The Camelot project was able to stay on track because of its smaller size and the state grant.

Park District Executive Director Steve Scholten said the park district still has hopes to renovate the rest of the park facilities, but the staff has not yet presented a plan for how to afford the projects to the park board.

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